


Best for everyone

by herilaveur



Category: SKAM (France)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:28:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24994648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/herilaveur/pseuds/herilaveur
Summary: May 2019, in a parallel universe.On the one hand, there's Lucas's father who is an unbelievable violent asshole but also a famous lawyer... and who just found out that his son is gay.On the other hand, there's Eliott who is totally broken and is taking refuge in alcohol and weed because he doesn't understand what's happening to his couple.And in the middle, there's Lucas who's trying to do what he thinks is best to protect the one he loves...but who's gonna protect him? and who's gonna protect Eliott from himself?
Relationships: Eliott Demaury/Lucas Lallemant
Comments: 60
Kudos: 96





	1. I don't understand

Lucas' words echo in his head. Eliott closes his eyes to try to calm his thoughts. He launches his favorite Dubstep playlist and puts on his headphones while cowering over himself. There is nothing better than this music to stop him from thinking. 

Stop him from thinking that he hates Lucas. 

He puts his head in his hands and cries. That's not even true. Even though Lucas broke him, he fucking loves him. He loves him with all his heart. It's like his fucking heart is gonna explode. He wipes his eyes, takes his beer, finishes it and throws it against the wall in front of him. He watches the bottle explode into pieces and starts crying again. He rips out his headphones to try to think clearly about the whole fucking situation. Trying to figure out what he did to make Lucas react like that.

His phone vibrates again and he bends over to grab him. It's Lucas, again. He hangs up moaning in anger. 

Eliott rereads several times the last message he got from Lucas before he starts laughing. It's from Saturday morning.

 _Good morning, my love. I just wanted to tell you that I love you. See you later_ 😍😍😍 _  
_

Eliott closes his eyes and he's back on Saturday. Just two days early, it's not much two days. How in two days everything can change like that? And above all, everything can be turned upside down without them understanding why. He puts his head on the wall behind him and he's back at the mall on Saturday afternoon.

_''I swear to God, baby, you look really good in that shirt. You look perfect."_

_Lucas is laughing as he hugs Eliott._

_''You're the perfect one, love. But okay, I'll take it. I like it.''_

_''Do you want to take this?'' Eliott asks, pointing to a gray hoodie with Love written on it. '' It would go with your Romance. In the almost three months I've been with you, you've only worn this sweater. It's gonna get ruined eventually."_

_Lucas rolls his eyes before he pushes him out of the fitting room._

_''Anything. My sweater is perfect, and I've seen you put it on many times, Mr. Hypocritical. I even got a bunch of pictures of you in it. I'm sure the only reason you want to replace it is so you can take me."_

_Eliott slowly opens the curtain to just pass his head._

_"YOU are perfect, Lucas Lallemant."_

_They kiss and Eliott scours the shelves looking for more pretty things for his boyfriend. Finally Lucas buys the blue shirt, a black jacket and two pairs of jeans._

_They're gonna buy a waffle before they go back to the flatshare._

_They have been home less than half an hour when Lucas' phone rings for the first time. Lucas looks at it rolling his eyes and puts it away, obviously preferring to concentrate on his boyfriend's hair, which he gently caresses. Eliott is lying on the couch with his head on Lucas' thighs and he is purring almost so much he is fine. But Lucas' phone, which keeps vibrating, interrupts their cuddle moment._

_"Who's that?"_

_Lucas sighs as he hangs up._

_"No one."_

_Eliott sits on the couch, looking at Lucas, frowning._

_''The invisible man doesn't have a phone, Lucas. So "I don't want to talk about it," is better than a lie, right?"_

_Lucas sighs and nods, obviously upset._

_''Yeah, well, I don't want to talk about it. I just want to enjoy this Saturday afternoon with you. Shall we go to my room?"_

_Eliott sighs. He knows there's no point in pushing Lucas when he shuts down, but he really wants to show him he can be there for him if he gets in trouble._

_"Hey, love" says Lucas softly as he leans over "it's okay, all right? I swear I'm okay. And I'm not cheating on you, if"_

_''No, I don't think about that.'' Eliott cut him, strokes his cheek ''but I just want you to know that I'm here for you. I feel like you keep me away from your problems just so I don't have to worry or because you think I already have my own problems to deal with. But I want to be here for you, okay? It's not a one-way relationship."_

_Lucas sighs and then take a big smile._

_''My only problem right now is that my boyfriend and I are alone in the apartment and we're still dressed.''_

_Eliott tries to smile before Lucas kisses him. He knows Lucas wants to distract him and it hurts his feelings. But he wants to give Lucas time to come over and talk to him._

_They don't leave the room until Sunday morning. Actually, it's Eliott who leaves on Sunday before Lucas is awake. But he promised his mother that he would be home by 9 o'clock to go to a little cousin's baptism so he leaves a little drawing on the pillow next to Lucas and kisses him gently on his cheek._

That was the last time he kissed Lucas. That was before Lucas broke his heart without him knowing why.

Eliott sits down and types a message. He deletes it at least three times because he can't write it correctly but ends up sending it.

_Fuck you, Lucas._

He puts his phone on the floor and stands up staggering. He grabs the last beer he has left and throws it against the wall. The beer splashes all over him while a piece of glass cuts off his arm. And he laughs out loud because he only now realizes that he forgot to drink it before he broke it. And then he starts crying because it's too hard.

He can't think anymore. All the words keep going round and round in his head. The words of his parents', the principal's, Basile's... and especially the words of Lucas'. 

His phone vibrates again and Eliott grabs it without looking. He knows it's Lucas. He throws his phone against the wall like the six beer bottles and watches it explode.

Eliott climbing to get on the bridge, and laughs. It sucks. Even if he jumped now, he wouldn't kill himself. At best he'd end up with a cast. This bridge is shitty. He shouldn't even have come here. But he knows very well why he's here. Because deep down he's hoping that lucas will come and find him,even though he knows that's not gonna happen.

He's standing on the edge holding on to the railing. His feet are on the side of the void and the railing is behind him. A car drives by and startled him. He closes his eyes and sighs. He wants to find Lucas' arms. He wants to forget everything that happened today. He wants to forget what Lucas said. He wants to forget that he spent the afternoon drinking and smoking to forget. He wants to forget that he's screwed up. He just wants to forget everything.

''Eliott !''

Eliott opens his eyes and smiles at the sight of his silhouette. He's on the path below but he doesn't run. Eliott realizes his smile. As if the only answer his body can have when it sees Lucas is to smile. He closes his eyes before he can actually see Lucas look up at him.

''Eliott, don't do anything stupid.''

Eliott laughs as he reaches out his arms to swing his upper body into in the air.

''It's too late, Lucas. I've done so many stupid things. The stupidest thing, I thought it was real between the two of us. I thought that was true love. Anyway, you're not here, it's just my brain hallucinating. Why would you be here?"

Eliott's eyes open again. Lucas' face is totally hidden by his hood and he's looking around like he's trying to find his way back to Eliott.

''Please, I'm so sorry. I'm real and I love you, Eliott. I wanted to protect you. I'm so sorry. I thought I was protecting you. Please come down, you're scaring me."

Eliott laughs again as he looks at him. Even he realizes that his laughter sounds drunk.

''I'm not going to jump, Lucas. It won't kill me."

''Then why are you up there?''

Eliott shrugs his shoulders and looks up at the sky.

''I'm looking at the stars. I'm looking for a universe where none of this ever happened."

Lucas looks up, but Eliott can't see his face still hiding under his hood. Anyway, the sun completely blinds him. He laughs when he realizes it must be afternoon. So he doesn't see any stars. So there's no universe to take refuge in.

''Come with me, please, Eliott. I love you, I'm sorry. We are in the universe where everything will be all right, I promise you."

Eliott closes his eyes and sighs. If only Lucas wasn't just saying that to get him off. Because Eliott knows he doesn't mean any of this. He's just here to make sure that Eliott doesn't kill himself. He doesn't want that on his conscience. And somewhere in his foggy, drunken brain, a little voice is whispering to Eliott that he doesn't want Lucas living with this on his conscience. He's squinting to try to look at it. He can't even tell if Lucas is real or not.

"I need you, Eliott. Minute by minute, remember? I really screwed up, but I need you. I need you to forgive me and you understand that I'm doing this for your own good, because I love you."

Eliott sighs again. He can't resist those words. So he walks along the railing and joins the little path on the side where he went up. 

_''I love you" "I'm sorry" "We'll make it all right" "I need you"  
_

Lucas' words are spinning in his head. He's tripping over a branch. His head is spinning, he shouldn't have been smoking or drinking so much, he's just not used to it anymore. He's almost level with Lucas when his foot hits a root and he falls headfirst. And everything goes black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I lost you... tomorrow we'll know what Lucas did... but not why. We'll just have to wait until chapter three for that.


	2. I want to see Lucas

Eliott tries to get up but his head really hurts. Hands are pulling him up to help him stand up and he already knows it's not Lucas. Lucas's not so strong.   
Eliott squints and looks at his father before he lets out a huge sigh. He was right. Lucas isn't here. It's his fucking brain that's hallucinating. He wants to see Lucas. So he closes his eyes while his father pulls him towards him to take him in his arms.

''Why did you do that, Eliott? Fuck.''

His father's voice isn't angry. Does he sound... jaded? Worried? Eliott doesn't even want to think about it. So he's thinking about everything that brought him here.

_Monday morning - 7:45, Eliott walks past the school gate in a hurry to get to Lucas. Lucas didn't answer any of his messages or calls yesterday and Eliott really needs to be sure that they are both okay, even if there is no reason why they shouldn't be. He doesn't want to sound like a possessive boyfriend, but he's really worried. Lucas never turns his phone off like that so Eliott tries to reassure himself that he must have broken it._

_But as soon as he sees Lucas, he sees that something is wrong. He approaches him but Lucas instantly pushes him away and looks all around him as if he is in a panic._

_''Lucas, what''_

_''You have to go'' Lucas cut him ''you have to stay away from me, Eliott. I will explain, but please stay away. Now.''_

_Eliott opens his eyes and looks at Lucas, but Lucas' look is running away from him._

_''Lucas, what''_

_Lucas jumps and Eliott is sure he's afraid of something. Eliott turns his head to see what can scare Lucas but this one pushes him._

_''Fuck off, Eliott. Get the fuck off me. Get out, now.''_

_Lucas walks into the school looking over his shoulder but without a look for Eliott. Eliott stands in the yard with his arms outstretched._

_He doesn't unterstand._

_So he does what no one should ever do. He's clinging. He knows Lucas has math class, so he goes to his class. He just wants to understand. He just wants to be able to talk to Lucas. But as soon as he walks through the classroom door, the teacher stops him._

_"Mr. Demaury, what are you doing here?"_

_Eliott sighs when he sees Lucas' sad face, which is none of his business. Yann elbows him, but Lucas doesn't react._

_''I just want to talk to Lucas. Please, Lucas."_

_''Classes have started. Anyway, the principal is waiting for you, Mr. Demaury.''_

_Eliott is startled._

_''What? Why?"_

_''Go to the principal without making a fuss, Mr. Demaury, you've already done enough. And leave Lucas alone."_

_Lucas looks up and Eliott can see he's really holding back his tears. Eliott can read an 'I am' on his lips, but the teacher pushes him down the hall and closes the door._

_He almost runs to the principal's office and this one is already waiting for him outside his desk. It is only when they enter the office that Eliott realizes that his parents are there too._

_''What the fuck is going on here?'' Eliott gets pissed off._

_''Sit down,'' orders the principal. ''We have a serious situation here, Mr and Mrs Demaury. The father of one of our students is a powerful lawyer and wants to sue Eliott for breach of trust of a minor."_

_"What?" Eliott yells out, and he gets up. "What the fuck? I'm... What? I didn't abuse anybody."_

_"Can we find out who it is?" Eliott's father asks. "His accusations are very serious."_

_"It's Lucas Lallemant's father."_

_Eliott falls sitting in the chair, head in his hands._

_''It's my boyfriend. He agrees. We're in love. We're in.."._

_''We've met Lucas a few times,'' says Eliott's mom as she puts her hand on her son's shoulder. ''They're just young people in love."_

_The principal sits down with his hands on his desk._

_''Lucas' father thinks that Eliott is abusing him. He thinks he used his illness to lure Lucas, recreating the relationship he had with his mother. He says Lucas is in danger because he's not capable of discerning Eliott's power over him. He proposes not to file a complaint or launch an investigation as long as we remedy the situation. We need to take action here at the school and..."_

_''But that's bullshit.'' Eliott yells out, ''His dad's just a homophobic asshole. Why doesn't anybody ask Lucas directly? He's almost 18.Talk to him, he'll tell you."_

_The principal sighs as he looks at Eliott._

_''I saw Lucas this very morning without his father present. Lucas admits that he agrees with his father, Eliott."_

_It's like something's breaking inside of Eliott. In his head, in his heart, in his gut. His whole body._

_He gets up and kicks his chair backwards. His father tries to grab his arm but Eliott is faster and he runs out of the office. He runs out of the school. He can talk to Lucas here._

_So he spends the morning outside trying to think. Trying to figure out why Lucas would think that? Wondering if it's true. Trying to figure it out. But he doesn't. Why would Lucas be ok with this?_

_At noon, he sends a message to Basile to meet him in the park. He's really hoping he did the right thing and he can count on him. He's so stressed and panicked, he almost expects Basile to show up with the cops. But no, Basile comes alone, looking behind him to see if he's being followed. He shoots Eliott in his arms as soon as he hits him._

_''Fuck, Eliott, what the fuck? It's all the high school talks about."_

_Eliott steps back to look at him._

_''What about Lucas? What's he saying?"_

_''He didn't tell us anything. Not even Yann. He was totally closed off. It's as if he wasn't there. We've never seen him like that. He threw up during the first class. Honestly, I don't know what's going on but we're all super worried. He's not answering our messages."_

_Eliott looks at Basile. He's just as worried as he is._

_''What? Where is he?"_

_"His dad came to pick him up after he threw up. He said he's taking him home."_

_Eliott pulls out his phone and immediately calls Mika._

_''Mika, it's Eliott. Is Lucas at home?"_

_Mika blows into the phone._

_''You're the third person to call me, Eliott. What's going on with Lucas? No, he's not here. And no, I have no idea where he is. Why?"_

_Eliott sighs in the face of Mika's legendary nonchalance._

_"Just tell me if he's coming, please."_

_''Okay. But... Wait."_

_Eliott hears the sound of a door slamming and then Mika utters a surprised scream._

_''I.''_

_"If that's Eliott, don't say anything."_

_Lucas' voice is far away, but Eliott can hear that it's tense._

_''I have to go, thanks for calling.''_

_Eliott is expecting communication to be cut off, but it doesn't. He understands that Mika just put it in his pocket without breaking the connection._

_''Lucas, why is everybody asking me where you are? What's going on?"_

_Lucas is sniffing around._

_''I have to go, Mika. I'm sorry. I have to get my stuff and go."_

_Eliott's heart is clenching. He leaves Basile and walks as fast as he can to the flatshare while listening to the conversation._

_''What? Where you going, kitten? Lucas, put the bag down, stop it. Tell me what's going on. Lucas stop."_

_''What's going on? I'm trying to do what's best for everyone.'' Lucas yells out, ''I'm sorry. I fucking knew it was gonna end badly, but I didn't think it was gonna be like this. I... I gotta hurry, Mika. I'm sorry."_

_Eliott hears the apartment doorbell ringing nonstop._

_''I have to go downstairs, he can't go upstairs. Don't go outside, Mika."_

_He hears the fear in Lucas' voice and puts the phone in his pocket and starts running._

_He runs up the street and sees Lucas slamming the door of the building._

_''Lucas!''_

_Lucas is startled and shakes his head to tell him no. A man gets out of the car parked in front of the building and looks furious. Eliott never saw him, but he assumes it's Lucas' father. Eliott keeps running because he doesn't care, he just wants to talk to Lucas._

_Lucas waves to his father not to move and walks towards Eliott._

_''Lucas, talk to me.''_

_''I opened my eyes,'' says Lucas ''I've been caught up in your illness. You let me believe I was your savior and I liked that kind of relationship like with my mom. But it's unhealthy, Eliott. The two of us, it's unhealthy. It's not love. I want you to stay away from me. Stay away from me."_

_Eliott grabs Lucas' hand and immediately pushes it away._

_''I don't love you, Eliott. Nobody can love someone like you."_

_Eliott's heart breaks as he falls to the curb. Lucas backs away and heads for the car, which pulls away almost immediately. Mika goes out of the building and tries to help Eliott to get up but he immediately pushes him away and runs away._

_He stops to buy some beers and grass from the 16th dealer and then finds himself under the bridge of the little belt. His place. Their place._

''Fuck, Eliott, open your eyes. Stay with us." his father says "But why did you do that today? We need you here. Lucas, come home with us, please. We will''

Eliott opens his eyes immediately and pushes his father. Lucas is there. He's always been there. He's sitting against a pillar of the bridge, knees raised towards him, head down. But even with his hood up, Eliott knows it's him. He'd know him of all people. And then his hair protrudes well out of his hood. Tears begin to come into Eliott's eyes as he walks towards him. 

Have you ever felt like you were totally drunk and to get sober in less than a minute? That a wave of emotion overwhelms you and freezes you on the spot, freezing all your organs at the same time, made you feel worse than a cold shower? 

That's exactly how Eliott feels when Lucas raises his head towards him and looks at him. 


	3. Let me absorb your pain

"Lucas."

Lucas bursts into tears and Eliott leans over but he doesn't even dare to touch him.

''Lucas, please come home with us.'' said Eliott's father softly.

Lucas looks at Eliott and then looks down again.

''I can't, David.''

Eliott reaches out his hand to Lucas' face and Lucas looks up at him again. It's like his eyes are broken. It's like the blue in his eyes is tarnished. Eliott gently caresses his bruises on his left cheek, on his temple and on his jaw. He runs his thumb over his severed lip and wipes away the tears from Lucas' eyes.

''I'm so sorry, Eliott. I don't want to lose you. I never wanted that. I love you, I didn't mean to say that, I''

Lucas starts crying again and Eliott pulls him towards him to hug him. But Lucas stretches himself out, moaning. Eliott loosens his grip and gently lifts Lucas' sweater where he discovers a multitude of blues of all possible colors while Lucas shamefully lowers his eyes. 

''Lucas, I need you to talk to me, please. I need to know what happened."

Lucas swallows as he hugs him. 

''Come home, boys.'' Asked Eliott's dad again. ''Please, Lucas. At least talk."

Lucas nods gently.

The three of them walk quietly to the apartment. As soon as they pass the door, David goes into the kitchen while Eliott takes Lucas to his room and they lock themselves against each other on his bed. Eliott tries not to hold Lucas against him because he is clearly hurting all over.

''Please, Lucas. It's your father do this to you?"

Lucas looks at him and Eliott wants to kill the world. Or at least whoever dared to hit Lucas like that. And when he imagines what Lucas was going through while he smoked and got drunk, he wants to hit himself. He feels tears streaming down his cheeks and he squints. He doesn't want to cry. He wants to be strong for Lucas. He wants to take him in his arms and take all the pain out of his body.

''He's the one who was trying to call me on Saturday. Sunday he showed up at the flatshare's. Luckily Mika had been sleeping at some guy's house and Lisa... that's Lisa, she was in his room. He told me his girlfriend had seen us both at the store on Saturday and she told him I was gay.''

''Oh, fuck!'' Shouts Eliott, startled Lucas, who walks away from him, clearly scared ''It's me. It's my fault. I called you by your full name. If I had just said baby, she wouldn't have even noticed us. I'm really sorry."

Lucas hides his face in his hands and sniffs.

''I didn't even think about that, Eliott. I'm the one who screwed up and I'm really sorry. Don't ever say it's your fault, you're not the one who...don't make this harder than it is."

Lucas starts crying again and Eliott gently puts his arm around him to pull him towards him and he gently kisses his cheek.

''You didn't screw this up, I'm right here, baby. Let's just take it one minute at a time, okay? I'm sorry, I won't say another word."

Eliott clenches his fists because he knows he's not ready to hear what lucas is going to say. Lucas gently wipes another one of his tears and lays his head against Eliott's chest.

''He totally freaked out because I'm gay. He told me it was just a phase and I had to get out of it now. But I told him, you know, I texted him at the very beginning of our story. I don't know why he only reacted now. Maybe because he knew we were kissing in public or because his girlfriend told him. Maybe he used to think I was just saying that to piss him off. I don't know. I don't know."

Lucas sighs and Eliott realizes that Lucas has his eyes closed.

''When I said no, he threatened to sue you for have prevented me from exercising discernment. I don't know how he knew you were bipolar, but he knew. Probably my mom who must have told him. He said it'd be easy to show you turned me around and you'd end up in jail because he could even prove that our relationship was non-consensual. If he proves I wasn't capable of discernment, he can incriminate you for whatever he wants, even rape. He's good, Eliott. He's a really good lawyer. I've seen him defend criminals and get them to win cases when they're really guilty. So I agreed to tell the warden I want you to stay away from me so he doesn't press charges. I couldn't tell you before because he took my cell phone. I swear, I was planning on getting a message to you through Yann but I didn't want the teachers to see it either.This morning he was looking at me in the high school. He had to see that I wasn't pretending. But when you showed up in class, I felt so bad for pushing you away that I threw up, so they called my dad. He said I was going to quit being the flatshare and live with him to get my life back on track. And''

Lucas bursts into tears.

''When I saw you, I knew he would hurt you. His fists were already clenched, I couldn't let him hit you. He could have killed you, Eliott. He really thinks you're the one who made me this way. And when he's angry, he... So I just said what he wanted to hear and hoped that was enough for him. I didn't mean that, love. I know I've broken you, and it's broken me, too. There's absolutely no part of you that I'm not deeply in love with, Eliott. You're the person I love the most in the world. But you had to back off, I just wanted to protect you, I'm so sorry. I just want to protect you."

Eliott shakes his head and caresses Lucas' tear-stained cheek.

"But who's protecting you, baby?"

Lucas shrugs his shoulders.

''I knew you wouldn't be okay after that. I wanted to warn the guys so they'd take care of you. So I snuck into his house to get my phone. There was a text message from your mom telling me that you were missing. So I tried to call them to tell them about the bridge, but my dad showed up. And..."

Lucas bursts out crying and leans over to Eliott like he wants to blend in and Eliott gently strokes his back.

''I managed to leave through the window when a neighbour rang the doorbell, probably because of my screams. I didn't know what else to do except to come find you. So I called your father to come help you. I shouldn't have stayed, but your dad didn't want me to leave after I told him. I feel so selfish being here. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't be here."

Eliott slowly pulls Lucas back from his embrace so he can look him in the eye.

''Are you kidding me, Lucas? You should never have had to go through this alone. I'm sorry. I should have known you were lying to me. I should've... I'm sorry. But I'm here now. We're gonna protect you. You're never going back there."

Lucas sighs as he hugs Eliott.

''He's a lawyer, Eliott. He's a really respected lawyer. Judges love him. They'll believe that. He's capable of saying that you did this to me. He's capable of saying that the cut on your arm was from a fight between us. I have no choice but to go back until I'm of age, otherwise he'll come after you."

Eliott gently strokes his cheek and kisses him on the forehead. He has to make a superhuman effort not to let anger get to him, but he doesn't want to scare Lucas. Lucas has had his fill of violence for his lifetime.

''I don't give a shit, Lucas. You're not going back there. We'll both to run away to another country if we have to, but there's no way he'll ever touch you again."

''Nobody's running away. Get that idea out of your head right now, Eliott."

Eliott watches his father walk across the room and sits at the end of the bed.

"He's not going back, Dad."

''David, I have no choice.'' Lucas says softly.

David puts his hand on Lucas' shoulder. Lucas is startled but instead of removing his hand, Eliott's dad gently caresses his shoulder.

''We can help you if you want to, Lucas, but you have to want to do it. The best thing you can do is press charges against him and he'll leave you alone. In two months, you'll be over 18 and he'll have no more rights over you. But until then, the only way he can keep you from going home is if he files physical abuse charges."

Lucas looks at Eliott, his father, then looks down.

''He knows everyone in the legal world, it'll never come to anything. I just want him to leave Eliott alone. He's probably already looking for your address and he's gonna get you all in trouble. I shouldn't be here right now, but I just wanted to make sure that Eliott's okay. I just want to do what's best for everybody. I'm going to go live with him until my birthday and then on the 10th of July I'm going to leave.''

''No way.'' Eliott says firmly. ''Never Lucas. Fuck no. Do you realize what you're saying? Think about yourself, damn it. He hit you, Lucas, he could kill you. I couldn't stand it if you go back there. If you love me just a little bit, don't do it."

Lucas steps back as if Eliott hit him, gets up out of bed and looks at Eliott like he's gonna kill him.

"I fucking love you, that's exactly why I'm doing this."

Eliott shakes his head and gets up to pull Lucas against him.

''No. You're not doing this for me. There's no way you're protecting me at your expense. We'll find another way. No. Dad, figure something out. Anything."

Eliott watches his father get up and gently nods his head.

''Matt's agreed to take over the investigation if you press charges, Lucas. He's my best friend and Eliott's godfather. He's like a brother to me and I trust him completely. He's a platoon leader in the drug squad, but he knows enough people to run the case himself. Your father's not the only one who can bypass the system, Lucas. Matt has a friend who's a lawyer in Nantes who's one of the best. And unlike the ones in Paris, he's not friends with your father. Matt can come here to take your complaint and accompany you to the hospital for a doctor's examination. But you have to want this, Lucas."

"What if he won't let me see my mom? What if he goes after her? What if he moves her to another city to punish me?''

Eliott smiles unwillingly as he gently tightens his grip on Lucas. His Lucas. This amazing guy who always wants to protect everyone before him.

''We can easily prove he left you alone at 16, Lucas. And that you've been taking care of your mom by yourself ever since. We can help you if you want."

''Please, Lucas.'' pleads with Eliott ''Let us protect you, don't go back there. I can't take it, Lucas. I can't let you go back there. You would never let me go back there if the tables were turned."

Lucas hugs Eliott, nodding his head very gently.

"Okay."

His voice is almost a whisper, but Eliott hears it and kisses him on the forehead.

''All right, I'm here, baby. You're safe now. I promise I'll protect you."

Eliott looks at his daddy taking out his phone.

''Okay, Matt's coming, he's bringing Raf just in case your father shows up.''

Eliott nods his head and smiles as his dad leaves the room.

''Thank you Dad.''

"Who's Raf?" Lucas whispers.

Eliott smiles.

''He's the sweetest dog. He's adorable. Just petting him is enough to make someone happy. You're gonna love him."

Strangely enough, now that the famous Raf is barking at him while pulling his jacket with fangs, Eliott wonders if he should have said that. Raf lets go of his jacket and stands in front of him, growling so badly that Eliott doesn't dare to move.

"Oh, Eliott!" Matt moans as he looks at him. "I thought you were done with the bullshit."

Eliott looks at his godfather without even blinking. The usually adorable dog almost jumped him as soon as he walked into the apartment.

''Come on, give me that, Eliott.'' Matt asks, holding out his hand.

Eliott blinks twice before he figures it out.

''That what? Oh, shit, he smells the weed, doesn't he?

"Since when do you have any weed?" Lucas asks, frowning. "Damn it, Eliott."

''I bought it earlier. I'm sorry. I just wanted to get away, it was too hard. When I tell you I can't live properly without you, Lucas, that's not just words."

Eliott looks at Lucas' sad face.

''I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. It's not your fault, Lucas. It was my decision to screw up. I'm sorry. But, you know, he's clearly selling me crap because I didn't get as high as I should have."

Eliott takes off his jacket and throws it on the floor.

''He must smell it in my pockets. But I promise I ain't got no more. It was just a couple of joints.''

''Damn it, Eliott, you can't do this.'' Lucas moans. ''Don't do this to yourself because of me, I'm sorry. I know I couldn't have said anything worse, but"

Eliott takes him in his arms while the dog brings the jacket back to Matt with a triumphant look.

''I'm the one who's sorry, baby. I know you were just trying to protect me."

Lucas sighs.

''I just forgot you had to protect you from yourself, too.''

Eliott nods his head and sighs.

''Yeah. I'm really sorry you have to do that, too. I'm sorry if my illness''

''Don't you dare finish that sentence, Eliott.'' Lucas cut him ''I never thought that, okay? I fell in love with you long before I knew you were bipolar. And I don't feel like I'm your savior. Or my mom's. I'm sorry about all that, love."

"Lucas?" Matt asks quietly as he joins them in the hallway, "Are you ready? I'll take your statement. We'll both set up in the living room, and you can tell me everything. From the beginning. Okay?"

Eliott puts his arm around Lucas' shoulders.

''No, Eliott.'' Matt says softly, ''You go take your shower. You smell like a brewery. I want to rip your head off, Eliott. What the hell were you thinking? I thought you were clean now? So, if you want to be there for Lucas at the hospital, you're going to shower and get dressed. And I swear, as soon as this whole thing blows over, we're gonna have a real talk, just the two of us. In the meantime, I'll be in the living room with Lucas. It's okay for you, Lucas?"

Lucas nods his head and gently kisses Eliott's cheek.

"He's right, I'm sorry, but you do smell like alcohol. Looks like you spilled more on yourself than you drank. Go ahead, I'm fine.''

Eliott looks at Lucas and then Matt.

''You don't let him go, okay? Under no circumstances.''

Lucas gently takes his hand and squeezes it.

''I swear I'm not leaving, Eliott.''

Eliott sighs and goes to his room to get some clothes. He enters the shower less than five minutes later. Anyway, it'll be a quick shower so he can get to Lucas if he needs him. 

He hears the bathroom door open and doesn't have time to open his mouth as Lucas comes in fully dressed in the shower and crying to hug him. 

Damn it, Eliott knew he shouldn't have left him alone.

''I can't do this, Eliott. I'm sorry. I can't."


	4. I wish I could never leave you

Eliott looks at Lucas without blinking. He's afraid Lucas will crack again if he loses eye contact.

''Are you ready, Lucas?'' Matt says softly. And Eliott realizes he's never heard him speak so softly before. ''We'll take as long as you need, okay?''

Lucas doesn't look at Matt. He only looks at Eliott. Eliott would have preferred to sit next to Lucas and hold him in his arms but Lucas asked him not to touch him while he was answering the questions and even if it broke his heart, so he sat right in front of him. 

''It's okay. I'm sorry. It's just"

''It's okay, Lucas. It's all right," Matt says quietly as he turns on the recorder. ''Take as much time as you need. It's all right."

Lucas is nodding his head and still watching Eliott. Lucas looks so small and Eliott knows it's not just because he's wearing his clothes. Eliott knows that Lucas like his smell so he has the impression to help him, even if he would like to be able to hug him. But he can't imagine how Lucas feels so he will do whatever he asks. Except let him go.

''I have to ask you again. Was that the first time your father ever hit you?"

Lucas sighs and shakes his head. Then he looks at the tape recorder.

''No.''

He looks down to speak and Eliott discovers a world he had no idea about. Lucas' words echo in his head and he has to fight not to cry.

_Eight years old. Hidden blues. Make-up. Cast. Bicycle accident. Broken wrist. Clumsy. Stairs. Skateboarding. Broken elbow. Cracked ribs. Head trauma. Belt. Threats. Accused my mother. My fault. Bad grades. Deserved._

Eliott jumps when Lucas says this word and he jumps up to join him and hugs him.

''You didn't deserve this, baby. Nobody deserves that. You deserve the world. You deserve love. You are so"

The apartment doorbell rings and Eliott freezes. So does Lucas. Fists immediately resound on the door.

''I know he's there. Open the door or I'll call the police for kidnapping and false imprisonment."

Eliott sees his father coming down the hall and Matt gets up at the same time.

''Eliott, you take Lucas to your room, lock the door and do not leave the room under any circumstances.''

Eliott nods his head and pulls Lucas into his room. His father grabs his arm before he closes the door.

''Don't leave, Eliott. If you go out the window, we can't protect you. You stay here, okay? Please don't do anything stupid. I know you love her, but running away won't really solve anything. Trust us."

Eliott nods his head and closes the door. Lucas is already sitting on his completely livid bed. He's not crying, yet the tears are flowing. Eliott joins him and grabs his plaid at the foot of the bed. He hugs Lucas and puts the blanket on top of both of them so that he can hide underneath. 

They each put their head on the other's neck and stay close to each other without a sound, cut off from the outside world by this blanket that serves as a shelter. Lucas is shaking and Eliott tries to hold him gently so as not to hurt him, but anyway Eliott knows that he is shaking too.

Suddenly, the only noises in the apartment are the howling of Lucas' father and the barking of the dog. Lucas' tears wet Eliott's neck and he clings to his shirt. Eliott gently caresses his back and whispers words of love.

When a door slams, Eliott moves Lucas back a little to look him in the eyes.

''We can escape out the window. Just the two of us until you come of age. We'll go to Belgium or Switzerland."

Eliott doesn't have time to figure out how to do that while Lucas is shaking his head.

''No, Eliott. Your father said not to move. We have to trust him. I'm scared, but I trust. I don't know why he's so eager to help me, but I trust."

Lucas rests his head on Eliott's neck and he strokes his back again. 

''He can't leave you like this,'' Eliott says softly, ''because I love you and you're my half, Lucas. I really love you and I will never let anyone hurt you again, I promise. Family is sacred to us, and we would do anything to protect each other. And you are my family, Lucas. I know we've only been together for a few months, but I know we're together for life. I love you so much, baby and I protect you."

When the doorknob comes down, they both startle at the same time.

''Eliott, open. It's okay."

Eliott sighs at the sound of his father's voice and takes Lucas' face in his hands and kisses him on the forehead.

''It's over, baby. ''

He pulls the blanket off, gets up and unlocks the door.

''We've come to an agreement.'' David says softly, ''I don't totally like it, but I think it's the best thing to do for now.''

Eliott realizes that Lucas only gets up when he puts his hand in his.

"Come on in the living room, Matt will explain it to you."

Eliott and Lucas sit quietly on the couch while Raf comes and lays his head on Lucas' lap and Lucas gently caresses him.

''He panicked when he realised we knew it all along, Lucas. This is a really big deal. His career is definitely on the line, there's no doubt about it. I guess he didn't think you were gonna stand up to him like that. He realized it was either you or his career. So he made a deal: he'd leave you alone. He signs the papers relinquishing parental authority. He considers you no longer exist and that he has no son, but you don't press charges."

"It"s okay" says Lucas. 

''It's out of the question,'' says Eliott. 

He turns to Lucas who always caresses Raf.

''He's scared, Lucas. You can destroy him and make him pay for everything he's done to you. You can win, Lucas."

Lucas shakes his head.

''Nobody wins in these kinds of stories. I just want to move on. I want to go to school, I want to hang out with my friends, I want to hang out with my boyfriend. I just wanna have a normal life. I don't want to get into a legal battle. I just don't wanna have anything to do with him ever again."

Eliott can't help but be disappointed and look at his father like he's looking for help.

''I think it's best for now,'' David says softly ''but that won't stop you from getting into a legal battle in a few years. Even if he makes you sign a confidentiality agreement, it's of no value in this kind of business."

Lucas nods his head as he takes Eliott's hands in his own.

''I'm okay with the deal, but I don't want to see him again and I want to be legally responsible for my mother. If he doesn't accept that, I'm turning down the deal."

Matt nods his head and gets up. And Eliott understands that Lucas' father was supposed to wait in his car. All he wants to do is go find him and blow his head off for everything he's ever done to Lucas.

''No, Eliott. I need you with me. Don't let him win, please. Violence won't solve anything. I'm scared enough of being like him that I can't control my anger, so don't get violent, not you either."

Eliott sighs and kisses Lucas' forehead. He's just too good at reading himself. 

''You'll never be like him, Lucas. I have total faith in you. I love you. I know you can scream when you're angry, but I know you don't want to hurt anyone."

Matt comes back less than five minutes later smiling.

''He's delivering the papers tomorrow. It's all good, Lucas. 'He'll get you to sign a confidentiality agreement about this, but even if you sign it, no one can hold him against you if you ever decide to press charges.''

Lucas nods and then bursts into tears, and Eliott's holding him against him. 

''It's over, Lucas. It's over."

Matt and David convince Lucas to go to the hospital to get a doctor to open a files. That way, he can use it as evidence in the future. Lucas doesn't cry once at the hospital and Eliott never lets go of his hand, even when the doctor takes pictures of the bruises.

But as soon as they enter Eliott's room, Lucas bursts into tears and they both take refuge under Eliott's blanket to hide again from the outside world, rocking each other with words of love.

The papers arrive the next day at 7:30 a.m. from a broker and are signed by a judge. As Eliott looks at them, he realizes that maybe Lucas is right. Maybe a legal battle would have been lost in advance. Maybe his father is high enough up to get away with it. Eliott can't suppress the sense of injustice running through his veins.

They stay all day at Eliott's house, clearly spending all their time in each other's arms. But Eliott's parents only allowed them to miss Tuesday's classes, so on Wednesday at 7:30 a.m., Eliott sighs as he looks at the apartment door. If he could, he would spend the whole day again holding Lucas in his arms, kissing each bruise and trying to make them disappear.

Lucas slips his hand into Eliott's and puts his bag over his shoulder.

''Here we go. Good day David and Helene'' said Lucas, looking behind him with a resplendent smile.

''Good day, guys.'' David says from the kitchen.

''See you tonight. Work well," said Helene from the bathroom.

''See you tonight, Mom. Bye, Dad," says Eliott before slamming the door.

Lucas smiled as he walked down the stairs.

"I'm gonna have to go home, you know."

Eliott stops and sighs as he looks at Lucas.

''I know. But I'm scared. I wish I never had to leave you. And we could do that, right? Could you come live with us? My parents really love you, and I would love to live with you."

Lucas shakes his head and smiles.

''I love you, Eliott and I'm sure we live together, but not like this. I'm going back to live with Mika and Lisa and you can come over as often as you want. And when we're ready, we'll get a place together, okay? But I don't want us to rush into anything because of this whole thing. I don't want us rushing into it and ruining our story."

Eliott smiles before he kisses him on the cheek.

''Nothing is gonna ruin our story. But I get it. Still, tonight my parents are expecting you for sushi night, so you stay one more night, okay?"

Lucas starts walking, smiling again.

''Yeah, I wouldn't miss sushi night, your mom's sushi is so good. Too bad you didn't inherit her gift for cooking. And then maybe tomorrow you can come to the flatshare with me?''

Eliott's got a big smile on his face.

''Oh, yeah. Totally."

They walk through the school gates hand in hand. The principal smiles softly as he waves to them. Eliott's parents came over yesterday to explain everything, and Eliott knows he's safe now. But the look on their faces from all the students makes him feel very uncomfortable. 

Lucas pulls him up to the wall where their friends are sitting and he greets them while huddling in the middle of Eliott's arms.

"What's up, guys?" asks Basile.

Eliott knows that Lucas talked a lot with his friends on the phone yesterday. He didn't tell them everything, but he said the most important things and Eliott is really proud of him. And he is really happy to see that nobody reacts to Lucas' still bruised face. Lucas asked them to pretend that this story never happened and Eliott is really happy that his friends understand that.

''Yeah, great. Ready for the bio test."

"Do we have a test?" Emma says, "Oh fuck. Why didn't I know that?"

Everybody's laughing as they watch her take out her bio notebook. Eliott looks around. Most of the students don't even look at them anymore. 

Yann almost runs up and throws his bag at the foot of the wall before gently pulling Lucas in his arms.

''Oh, Bro.''

Okay. Almost no one reacts to Lucas' face. But Lucas takes him in his arms and Eliott can't help but roll his eyes when he hears him reassure Yann. It's always the same with Lucas, he wants to protect everyone before himself. He wants to take care of everyone around him.

"Don't worry, Yann, I'm fine. Everything will be OK now."

Yann holds him for a few more seconds before he lets go and Lucas steps back to take his place in Eliott's arms. Eliott gently kisses Lucas' cheek and then leaves two kisses in his neck while the bell rings.

''Good day, baby, I miss you already.''

Lucas turns around and smiles.

''One second without you is too much for me.''

''Oh, fuck, we missed you so much.'' Arthur laughs. ''You guys are so cheesy. Come on, lovers, let's go to class."

They're all heading to the main building. Lucas kisses Eliott again, several times before he runs down the hall to join his buddies. Eliott rejoins his class and turns around just before entering in this class. He sees Lucas who turns around at the same time and sends him a kiss. Eliott pretends to catch him and they start laughing.

They are right, they are too cheesy, but he dont' care. See Lucas smile and hear him laugh, it's just perfect. Eliott is happy, because Lucas is happy. Everything's going to be okay now.

It's only at night, when they both find themselves in Eliott's bed in their boxer shorts, that a little voice comes into his head. He tries to silence it by closing his eyes so he can't see the bruises on Lucas' chest and arms, but even so, the voice stays in the corner of his head. 

''Soon it will no longer be visible, Eliott.'' Lucas says softly as he strokes his cheek, ''I'll be fine.''

Eliott opens his eyes, smiles and kisses him. But the little voice doesn't leave his mind. And Eliott knows she'll never leave him.

_Did Lucas really do the right thing by not filing a lawsuit or will all of this resurface at the most unexpected moment?  
_

Eliott's gently squeezing Lucas against him. He can only hope he will be for him if it happens.


	5. I promised to protect you

What Lucas loves about his job is that there's never a routine. So, yeah, sometimes he sees traumatic things, but he's learned to step back from them so he doesn't suffer too much. But he wouldn't do anything else for anything in the world except be an E.R. nurse. 

And then he's so damn lucky he gets to go home after every shift to find his husband waiting for him. And even if he doesn't wait for him with the meal ready because he's forbidden to stay in the kitchen, and even if sometimes he doesn't smile at him when he comes home because just breathing seems complicated, Lucas is happy. Because he is lucky to have him in his life and even if sometimes it is difficult, everything will be fine as long as they are both together. 

It is only when Lucas works at night like now that they see each other less, but Lucas loves to work at night. The hospital at night is really another world, even in the emergency room. And since tomorrow is Sunday, Eliott will surely work on his movie and wait for Lucas to go to bed with him at 7 am. When Eliott does that, it's just so great...

''You're thinking about your husband.'' Chris says as he hands him a cup of coffee.

Lucas thanks him with a chuckle.

"Am I that predictable?"

"A real open book." Anne laughs as she sits around the table. 

Lucas looks at the time. 8:05pm. The day shift just left, leaving the transmissions to Marie, the night doctor. Lucas loves working with Marie because, unlike other doctors, she is close to the nurses. He and Chris love working with her and the three of them have a lot of fun when there are not many sick people. She's 45 years old and loves to talk about the problems she has with her two teenagers, which makes the two nurses laugh. It's funny because sometimes when she talks about it, Lucas imagines himself to be the teenager in question, and sometimes he puts himself in the parents' shoes. Lucky for him, he knows he won't have to deal with a teenager in his house for a long, long time, maybe never, so he takes advantage of it and laughs at Marie's anecdotes.

''So? Quiet night?'' asks Lucas as he glances at the empty waiting room.

''Yeah, let's hope it lasts.'' confirms Anne ''two women ready to give birth who went straight to the maternity ward. In stall 1, there's a drunk guy that the fire department picked up off the street. In 3, there's a 50-year-old man who wanted to show his son that he could skateboard, he broke his arm and is waiting for ortho. I swear to God, teenagers will kill their parents."

The welcome beeper goes off and Chris gets up.

"I'm going, but if it's a another drunk guy, I resign.''

Lucas laughs because he knows Chris is lying. They've been partners for six years, and they love working together. Everybody says they're the best working nursing couple in the ER and all the doctors love working with them. Lucas can't disagree with that, they work really well together. It's also why they've become fast friends outside of work too.

Chris comes back five minutes later with a file in his hand.

''Lucas, the firemen just took your little brother away, he fell down the stairs. At least his wrist and his broken leg. I put him in Box 6."

Lucas looks at Chris and widens his eyes, then laughs out loud.

''Shit, nice try, man. Except I'm an only child. Another drunk guy, then? You can say it, you know. All right, I'll take care of him. But on Friday when we go out with Eliott and Marie, drinks on you. When I tell your wife about this, she's gonna freak out about your techniques for giving me the drunk guys.''

Chris looks at him and then frowns.

"I'm not kidding, Lucas.'

Lucas looks up at the sky.

''I don't have a brother, Chris. I never had a brother. I would know, right?''

Chris nods his head and smiles.

''I'm sorry, I thought you did. Cause his father is Thierry Lallemant and I know yours is because I was at your wedding and they said it a couple of times. Sorry, it's just a coincidence then. This poor kid totally seems''

"Wait, give.''

He rips the file out of Chris's hands and opens it so fast, he drops the leaves in it. He turns the pages, and eventually he finds what he's looking for: Background information. 

''Holy shit.'' Lucas groans as he reads the date of birth of the kid's father ''What the fuck?''

If having a namesake is possible, having a namesake with the same date and place of birth is just not possible. Lucas feels a tear in the corner of his eye but makes no movement to remove it. 

''Lucas, what's going on?''

Lucas looks at the file in front of him.

''He's my little brother. Well, half-brother. He's my father's son. We have the same fucking father."

Chris smiles and gives him a pat on the back. 

''That's what I've been trying to tell you, Lucas. He's gonna be happy to see you."

Lucas looks up and Chris immediately stops talking.

''I don't know him. I didn't even know he existed. I haven't seen my dad in 10 years. I was emancipated at 17 because my father beat me. But how can I have a 14-year-old brother and not know it?"

Chris and Anne are stunned by it, until Chris gets up and gets close to Lucas again.

''Damn, Lucas, we're friends. I was at your wedding. Why?"

''Why what, Chris?'' gets Lucas ''Why didn't I tell you that my father used to hit me when I was a kid and he said that I had been in a bicycle accident, fell down the stairs or was clumsy. I'm sorry I didn't tell you that he beat the crap out of me when I was 17 when he found out I was with Eliott and it was my in-laws who got me out of his clutches and emancipated me."

Lucas puts his head in his hands. He needs to think. And as soon as possible.

''How can I have a 14-year-old brother? I have to call Eliott."

Anne nods her head.

''Okay. I'll take a look at it. Where's his father?"

Lucas sighs and then tries to breathe slowly. 

''He was following the firemen in his car'' Chris says quietly, ''He'll be here.''

Lucas looks at the clock, then gets up and pulls his phone out of his nurse's coat. He tries to breathe, but it's like his breathing's blocked.

''We're not letting him in.'' says Marie ''Chris, you're blocking him. Call security until we find out what happened with... " She looks quickly at the file ''with Adrien, he doesn't go into the ward. Lucas, you come talk to him. Unfortunately, you've been through this, maybe he'll confide in you. Where's his mother?"

Lucas is looking at his phone. He just wants to call Eliott. He needs Eliott now.

''She died of cancer three years ago, he said it on the way in.'' Chris says quietly. ''He said that's why he didn't want to go to the hospital. He tried to convince the fire department to let him go. Except he needs two casts, and he was unconscious when the fire department got there, so there's no way they'd let him go that way."

Lucas sends a quick text and puts his phone in his pocket.

''Okay. I'm going to go to him. Really block him, Chris, there's no way I'm confronting him. I can't.''

Chris is heading to the airlock. Lucas takes a deep breath as he opens up room six. Frankly, he'd much rather have found a drunk guy puking all over him. But he knows Chris told him the truth when he looks at the blond teenager with a totally bruised face. He has a huge bruise under his eye, the arcade is held by a bandage that Lucas will have to redo quickly and correctly, he holds his wrist which is already purple and wears a splint on his left leg.

As the boy's blue eyes cross his own, Lucas feels totally engulfed by a wave of guilt. If only he had listened to Eliott, if only he had been brave and had filed a complaint 10 years ago, this boy would never have gone through this. He wouldn't be here. Lucas realizes his breathing is quickening and he knows he has to stay calm. The boy on the bed looks away to look at his wrist again and Lucas takes a breath.

_When you can't go back, all you have to worry about is how best to move forward._

So Lucas walks over to the bed and sits down next to Adrien.

''Hi Adrien. My name is Lucas, I'm a nurse. Do you want to tell me what happened?"

The teenager takes a deep breath and looks Lucas in the eye.

"I don't know."

Lucas frowns.

"You don't know what happened?"

Adrien shakes his head and rolls his eyes.

''No. I don't know what to say. I'm trying to decide what to do. I'm just trying to figure out the pros and cons. Can you give me another five minutes, please?"

Lucas looks at Anne standing in the room, nodding his head.

''Just tell the truth. We need to know so we can treat you."

The teenage boy looks his wrist and looks at Lucas again with a dark look on his face. Lucas can't tell if he's sad, angry or afraid. Maybe a combination of all three.

''If I say it, you're gonna want to put me in a orphanage because I have no family except my dad. My best friend lives in the orphanage, I don't want to go there. I'd rather go home."

Lucas puts his hand on Adrien's hand.

''He did this to you, didn't he? It's my fucking fault. I'm so sorry."

Lucas tries to hold back all his tears and he feels Anne's hand on his shoulder.

"Lucas, you should get out."

Lucas shaking his head looking at Adrien.

''I refused to press charges against him. If I had, he could never have done that to you. I'm sorry, I would have done it if I'd known you existed. I'm sure this isn't the first time he's done this to you."

Adrien puts his head down shamefully and then looks at Lucas frowning.

"How do you know my father?"

Lucas sighs.

''He was my father too. And he did this to me too. Many times."

Adrien widens his eyes and stares blankly. 

''I'm sorry, Adrien, I didn't know you existed or I would have pressed charges. I just wanted to get away from him. But we'll help you, if you want it. Do you want to tell us what happened?"

Adrien nods gently with a sigh. 

''My best friend was home. A lot of times he comes over after school because he doesn't like the guys in his orphanage, they give him problems because he's gay. I'm not, but I don't care, so he comes in my home. I have the house almost all to myself because my dad always works late. And I'm fine with that. Except tonight he came home early. We were lying in my bed with Damien. We were talking about some guy from school he wants to date. I didn't hear him come in. He kicked Damien out... and told me it couldn't happen again. He threw me up against the wall. My head hit the wall so hard, I don't remember a thing. I woke up in the fire truck. He started hitting me when I was 10, but it's worse since my mom died. He says it's my fault but then tonight, he really went crazy."

Lucas takes Adrien's hand in his.

''Holy shit, I'm really sorry. It's totally my fault this whole thing. We're gonna help you, Adrien. I promise, I won't let you go to a orphanage. You're my brother, I'll be there to help you, but don't stay with him."

Adrien sighs.

''Why would you do that for me? Do you really expect me to believe that you're willing to take a 14-year-old kid you don't know into your home, no questions asked?"

Lucas smiles at him, gently shaking his hand.

''Cause he's family, Adrien. I was taught that family is sacred and that sometimes you find a family where you didn't expect it and you have to accept the hand they offer you. I have a family now, and there is a place for my little brother. We'll have plenty of time to get to know each other. You know, if it were up to me, I would've taken the blows. I took it for years, and I really thought I deserved it. But no one should ever have to accept that. I can't let him hurt you the way he hurt me. A father should never do that. I haven't seen him in ten years and I still have nightmares. I still have this fear inside of me that I'll end up like him. You can get through this, Adrien, don't let him break you any more than he already has. It's got to stop before it's too late."

Adrien gives a little smile and a gentle nod.

"Okay, Lucas."

''Okay'' says Anne, ''I'll call the police and the social services childcare center.''

Lucas watches her come out and sighs as he looks at Adrien. 

''I'm really sorry, I'm here now, it's over Adrien.''

Adrien bursts into tears and Lucas knows exactly what it's like to have this fucking wave of relief piercing through his body. He sees himself in Eliott's arms again, crying in exactly the same way. 

''It's over, Adrien.''

Adrien looks at him and wipe his eyes with his good hand.

''I always dreamed of having an older brother. I hope you're cool. So you're a nurse? Do you have a wife? Do you have kids?"

Lucas grabs a suture kit to stitch up Adrien's arch and sits across from him.

''I've been an ER nurse for seven years. I don't have a wife or kids, but I have a husband. We've been together for 10 years and we've been married for 4 years. He directs films and series.''

Adrien seems to think and then nods his head.

''Ok...I understand better what happened tonight. ''

Lucas feels a huge wave of guilt again, but Adrien gives him a elbow stroke, before wiggling and holding his wrist again.

''Damn, I forgot.'' he grunts before he looks at Lucas ''Hey, none of this is your fault, okay? You're not the one who hit me. I'm used to it, you know."

Lucas gets up and hugs him.

''No one should be used to that, Adrien. You"

He stops when he hears the sound of a fight. The door opens suddenly and Lucas stands up but immediately freezes. Adrien takes Lucas' hand in his. Lucas sees the realization in his father's eyes, who widens his eyes as he looks at him.

''Lucas, get away from my son.''

Adrien shakes Lucas' hand a little more and he shakes his head.

''You can't keep doing this. He's safe now. You won't touch him again. But what kind of father does that to his kids? You're a monster."

Lucas sees his father shaking his head and walking towards them.

''You're not gonna make him another gay, Lucas!"

His dad grabs his arm and Lucas is totally freezing. He wants to move, but he can't. He closes his eyes when he sees his father do this gesture he's done hundreds of times: raise his arm, ready to hit him. He feels like he's gone back years and he hates it, but he can't react otherwise. He expects to feel the blow, totally petrified, but he just feels his father letting go of his arm. Lucas shouts a cry of surprise as he opens his eyes but he doesn't have time to talk about Eliott letting go of the collar of his father's shirt by which he pulled him back and throws his fist in his face. 

''You ain't touching my husband, asshole.''

Eliott gives him a second shot before he drops it and raises his hands in front of Chris, who comes in visibly bruised, with the security guy nailing Lucas' father to the ground. Two other security guys arrive almost immediately and lift him off the ground to take him to wait for the police.

''The police are coming,'' says Anne ''they're gonna take care of him and take Adrien's complaint.''

''And mine.'' Chris says holding his forearm. ''Fuck, I'm sure that motherfucker broke my arm. I really need to work out. I'm really sorry, Lucas. The security guy had to go out and settle a parking dispute and"

''All right, don't worry about it, Chris. I'm sorry about your arm.'' Lucas look Eliott in the eye, because he knows Eliott's been waiting 10 long years for this. ''I want the police to take my complaint too. It's really over this time."

Eliott immediately joins Lucas to gently take him in his arms.

''I'm proud of you, Lucas. I'll be there. I'm there."

Lucas hugs him, putting his head on his shoulder.

"Thank you, my love. Thank you for protecting us."

Eliott pulls him back to kiss his forehead.

''I swore to you, baby. You're safe now. You're both safe now."

Lucas nods his head and gently pushes Eliott away.

''I should have done this a long time ago. I should have listened to you. Adrien, this is my husband, Eliott. Eliott, this is Adrien, my little brother. He's going to come live with us if he wants to. I'll call Daphne and have her take care of the case." He looks at Adrien and explains to him, "One of our friends works in social services. You're not going to a orphanage. If you'd like to come, you're welcome to come home and discover the true meaning of family."

Adrien smiles and nods his head before looking at Eliott, questioning him with his eyes. Eliott nods and smiles.

''I never thought I'd have a teenager in the house so quickly but I'm happy to have you Adrien. Lucas' family is my family. And family in the Demaury house is sacred. We had extra rooms, but babies aren't really our thing. So if you don't wet the bed anymore, I'm cool with that."

"What if I do?" Adrien asks in an ironic voice and smiles slightly.

''Oh, God, I have a feeling the three of us are gonna get along just fine."


	6. I don't believe it

''Okay guys, I'm warning you that if your ass isn't in the car in five minutes, I'm going to start screaming!''

Adrien and Damien come down the stairs laughing. Adrien's hair is totally messed up, as usual, while Damien's black hair is so neatly combed that it doesn't move one iota even though he practically jumps down the stairs to get to the bottom before Adrien.

"You're already screaming, Lu." says Adrien as he heads into the kitchen to steal a muffin.

Eliott bursts out laughing at the other end of the living room then steps forward to wrap his arms around Lucas' waist and plant two kisses in his neck.

''It's all right, baby. They're ready, we're ready. Everybody's gonna be on time. Everybody's gonna be fine. And most importantly, I love you."

Lucas sighs as he turns to Eliott.

''But how can you be so relaxed? Our babies are taking the final exams of the high school, and you're acting like this is a normal day."

Eliott is pretending to pout, and it makes Lucas laugh.

''I love you too.'' Lucas blows ''But I feel like I'm gonna die if the whole fucking family's not in the car in less than five minutes. I thought when you adopt teenagers you're supposed to forget all the sleepless nights and parental anxiety? I think I've been lied to a lot about that. I haven't slept all night, and I'm totally freaking out."

Eliott laughed as he kissed Lucas' forehead.

''You're so dramatic. Plus you've been working all week on nights, so it's a good thing you didn't get any sleep at work. But today, you get some rest, okay? Come on, guys, let's get in the car or Lucas is gonna die and nobody wants that, right? The three of us will never survive without him."

Damien takes his vibrating phone out of his pocket.

"Can I go out on Saturday?"

Lucas looks at him with his eyebrows raised.

''You're not talking about this Saturday, in the middle of your finals, are you? Tell me you're kidding, Dam."

Eliott laughs out loud again.

''With who?"

Damien looks up at the same time as Lucas.

''Leo. Who do you want me to go out with? It's our second anniversary. He was supposed to be gone, but his mother finally agreed to let him stay in Paris. Come on, please."

Eliott's giving Lucas puppy-dog eyes.

''Second birthday, baby. Remember ours? He can't miss that. Besides, you know, Leo, he's a good kid, they'll be good. Please, baby, you know what it's like to be totally crazy in love, right?"

Lucas sighs as he grabs the car keys.

''Ok. But no booze, okay? You need to be fresh on Monday for finals."

Damien looks like a winner and so does Eliott.

''Yes! You are the best fathers in the world."

He jump around Eliott's neck and kiss him before they take the keys out of Lucas' hand and kiss him.

"I'm driving."

''No.'' shouts Adrien as he tries to take the keys out of his hands. ''I'm driving, it's my turn. Eli, say something to him. Lu, please tell him no."

Lucas shrugs his shoulders and smiles.

''Do you decide, you two, but hurry up, we should be gone by now.''

''Come on, for once be a cool brother.'' Adrien says looking at Damien.

Damien laughs as he hides the keys behind his back.

''I'm already the best brother in the world, Adrien. Otherwise you wouldn't have asked your brother to adopt me at the same time as you.''

''Lucas is already the best brother in the world.'' Adrien says, taking the keys away from him. ''And then Eliott and Lucas suggested it, I didn't ask for anything. But you were practically living here already, squatter."

Adrian presses the last one and laughs, and everyone knows he doesn't mean it. 

''Just for that alone, you lose, Adrien'' says Eliott, with a wince ''you know Damien is part of the family and not just because he squatted here all the time. I hate it so much when you say that!"

''I was just kidding, Eli,'' Adrien defends himself by putting an arm around Damien's shoulders. '' You know I'm just kidding, bro.''

"Don't worry, Dad," Damien laughs. "He's just saying that because he's jealous. Because I'm a much better driver than he is."

Adrien sticks out his tongue while Lucas opens the door, looking at the time again.

''All the more reason for me to drive. That's the whole point of accompanied driving, it's practice, right?"

Eliott grabs the keys out of Adrien's hand and starts laughing.

''Oh, God, you guys are such a pain in the ass sometimes. I drive 'cause otherwise we're all gonna be late. Come on, let's get in the car."

The two boys go out sulking while Lucas waits for Eliott to kiss him.

"Thank you, my love." He grabs the car keys and winks at him "I'm driving because you're driving like a snail and they're gonna be late."

Lucas pulls up in front of the school as the bell rings and he smiles as he watches the two boys join their friends in front of the school laughing. As usual, Damien jumps straight into Leo's arms while Adrien greets all their friends laughing, and probably laughing a little at the couple.

''I feel so old.'' Lucas whispers as he looks at Eliott.

Eliott giggles and slides his hand up his thigh.

''Yeah. 30 years, huh?''

Lucas sighs as he rolls his eyes.

"30, huh?" Repeats Eliott "and two 17-year-olds at home. Admit it, you never thought our life would turn out this way."

Lucas laughs as he shakes his head.

''Hell, no. If you ask me, we're in the weirdest universe there is. The only universe where we become guardians to my little brother and where we adopt his best friend. It's just totally crazy when you think about it. We're just the weirdest family in the world."

Lucas pulls up in front of the France TV building and smiles when Eliott puts his hand on his cheek.

''It's just a beautiful act of love, baby. Maybe we coined the term fathers-son love at first sight with Dam, but who cares? Besides, crazy's the one thing you never regret, right?"

Lucas kisses him before he rolls his eyes. 

''It's been a long time since you've quoted Oscar Wilde at 8:00 in the morning. Do you know I love you?"

''I love you, too. By the way, I need you to call Alicia back to confirm for tomorrow. What are your plans for tomorrow with Laura?"

Lucas smiles.

''We'll pick her up outside of school with Adrien. We'll take her shopping for her birthday and we'll eat waffles, since she loves waffles. Alicia picking her up right there around 6:30pm. Who knew I had a brother and sister, huh? But what man in his right mind can lead three different lives with three different women and have three children and hope that nobody finds out? Still, with a nine-year-old sister, it's weird, but it's cool. I was complaining about being an only child, it's really over."

Eliott frowns.

''Your father is not in his right mind, Lucas. And as much as I like to think everyone deserves a second chance, I hope he never comes back to France. He's just an asshole."

''Hey, calm down. It's okay, Eliott. He ran away to escape shame and the consequences of his actions. He's far away and we're fine."

"He deserved to go to jail." Eliott grumbles.

Lucas smiles as he strokes his cheek, resting his forehead against his husband's.

''I agree. But that would have required him to kill one of us, and I'm glad that didn't happen. But now we're okay. We're all fine and we both have an incredible family and even though it's a horrible thing to say, I feel like he's the reason we have our boys with us now. So yes, I wish we had never gone through that, and that Adrien didn't go through that either, and that Damien wasn't kicked out of four foster homes and placed in a horrible orphanage before our paths finally crossed, but all of that allowed us to start our family, no matter how weird it was. And everything we've gone through in the last 3 years with our boys just wipes out everything bad we went through before. We're fine, Eliott. Our boys are fine. But now you're gonna be late, and I really need to get some sleep because last night's work was exhausting. So I'll see you tonight, my love."

Eliott kisses him and gets out of the car smiling.

''You know you didn't have to take us out this morning. They're gonna be okay, baby. Now try to get some sleep. Really."

Lucas nods his head and sends him a kiss. Eliott pretends to catch him and they laugh like idiots.

Lucas comes home around 9:40 because of the traffic jam. He yawns but decides to pick up the clothes that are lying around the house. He runs a washing machine and then empties the dishwasher while listening to music.

He almost runs to his phone when he makes a ping. And only then does he realize that it is already 11:00.

_Hey, Dad, just to tell you that the math test was too easy! Now go to sleep, please. Don't worry about us. Love U  
_

He barely puts his phone down when he gets a second message.

_I guess you're not sleeping, Lu. So don't worry, everything's fine. That was too easy. The bio test is about to start. I love you, Lu._   
_Sleep!_

Lucas laughs as he looks up at the sky. How can he sleep on such a stressful day? Besides, he doesn't work for another two days, so even if he doesn't sleep today, he could sleep next night in Eliott's arms. 

He puts the kitchen back in order and decides to take a shower. Warm water always does him as much good as a good nap. He turns off the water in the shower when he seems to hear the sound of a slamming door.

"Anybody home?"

No answer and Lucas rolls his eyes. Of course there's no answer, he's alone. So he turns the water on, rinses himself out, but he hears a thud coming from downstairs. This time, he's absolutely certain he heard it. 

He comes out of the shower feeling the anxiety and grabs a towel and ties it around his waist. He just comes out into the hallway with his head, but there's nothing there, and no noise. So he grabs another towel to dry his hair. Just as he's about to laugh at himself, a vase breaks in the living room.

He hears a muffled curse, and it's freezing his blood off. He tries to think as quickly as possible and not to panic, but he hears a door slam again. He goes into Adrien's room and grabs a baseball bat, thanking his brother inwardly for loving the sport. 

He goes down the stairs trying to make as little noise as possible and feels like his heart is about to explode so he hears it beating in his ears. 

He immediately notices that the office door is closed when he is sure it wasn't earlier. He approaches slowly, felt worried and stupid at the same time. It wouldn't be the first time he's scared himself to death for nothing.

He hears a muffled noise in the room and opens the door. He lets go of the baseball bat, shouting with surprise.

"Lucas.''

He jumps, but fortunately he has the reflex to hold on to his towel before turning around.

''Damn, David, you scared the shit out of me.''

David looks at him and smiles as the little chocolate hairball that was in the office passes between them.

''Sorry, Lucas, I didn't mean to scare you. Why aren't you asleep? I thought I was leaving Eliott's present in the office so I wouldn't wake you up? I had to go back to the car to get his basket. Did I wake you up? I'm sorry. It slipped out of my hand and dropped a vase."

Lucas laughs as he pushes the baseball boat into the office with his foot.

''No, I was in the shower, I wasn't sleeping yet. I forgot you were coming by this morning. I'm sorry. I don't even know how I could forget that. I'm going to get dressed and we'll have coffee, okay? Don't worry, that vase was ugly. Uh... do you know where the dog went?"

David looks around and shrugs his shoulders and laughs. Lucas goes to get dressed, leaving his stepfather to look for the dog. Now it's clear that he won't be able to sleep all day, he's so excited that Eliott will discover, a week in advance, his birthday present. 

So indeed, after talking for a while with David, mainly about boys and their choices for higher education, Lucas spends the day playing with this little chocolate labrador, given to him by one of David's colleagues. 

He catches the dog in his arms when he hears the door open.

''Baby? Are you awake?"

Lucas smiles. Eliott almost whispers, like he always does when Lucas works at night.

''Yeah. I actually didn't sleep. I'm in the living room."

He hears Eliott sighing in the hallway, but nothing could take away the big smile on Lucas' face.

''Oh, baby. I swear to God"

Eliott stops immediately when he arrives in the living room and looks at the puppy in Lucas' arms.

"Baby, what is this?"

Lucas couldn't have a bigger smile.

''With a little advance notice, your birthday present. Happy birthday, my love."

Eliott drops the mail in his hands and jumps over to Lucas to hold the puppy.

''Oh, my God, is that true? He's really ours? Can we really keep him?"

Eliott looks like a child on Christmas Day, and Lucas couldn't be happier.

''Of course we can keep him, he's ours. We just need to find a name for him."

Eliott pulls Lucas up to give him a tender kiss as the puppy jump on the floor

''Thank you, baby. Thank you so much. It's perfect. You're perfect. Oh my God, I don't believe it.''

Lucas giggles as Eliot kisses his neck. 

''You're the one who's perfect, Eliott. So what do you wanna call him?''

Eliott thinks as he looks at the dog and then looks at the time.

"We wait for our boys to choose?"

The dog barks for the first time of the day and Lucas bursts out laughing as he hugs Eliott.

''Yeah, I think he's okay with this.''

**Author's Note:**

> Do you like it? Don't you like it? Do you think it's too much? Not enough? Tell me what you think, I love interacting with people who take the time to read. 😉


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